September, 2013: Five Marshallese women joined three French Polynesians and three Hawaiians to weave their magic at Hawaii's Bishop Museum at the end of September. The Weaving Symposium coincided with the opening of the Bishop's new Pacific Hall and was organized by the University of the South Pacific through a grant from the French government. The goal was to be inspired by, share and communicate ideas among different cultures through the circle and process of weaving. Jaki-ed (clothing mat) weavers Moji Kelen, Bonitha Jesse, Betty Lobwij, Susan Jieta, and Patsy Jibas represented the Marshalls at the week-long event, which was held in the museum's Hale Ikehu Building. "The weaving space was very breezy and perfect for the symposium," said Tamara Greenstone Alefaio, the coordinator of Continuing and Community Education at the University of the South Pacific, which helped organize the symposium.
"The museum staff, and especially Betty Kam, were fabulous and very supportive of the project, often stopping in to watch and check on everything." Cultural champion Maria Fowler also accompanied the group while strong support for the week's activities was also provided by old friends of the Marshall Islands Mary-Lou Foley and Caroline Yacoe.
The weaving space in the grounds of the Bishop Museum received many visitors with word about the weaving workshop also reaching Oahu's Marshallese community, with quite a few ri-Majol stopping by to chat with the women.
Tamara added that while there were significant language barriers between the weavers, "it was really neat to watch them interact just through their weaving." New weaving techniques and skills were learned. Questions were asked and materials and equipment generously shared with each other as well as ideas about cultural loss and revival. A highlight of the symposium for the Marshallese weavers was a visit to the Bishop Museum's archives, where 20 or so historic jaki-ed are stored. The contemporary weavers were incredibly excited to see these antique mats, with Patsy 'secretly' snapping photos of the mats on her iPhone. "The next day, we saw Patsy working intently on a mat with the iPhone in front of her. She was developing a contemporary design based on what she had seen in the old mat's design," said USP Director Dr. Irene Taafaki, who made a well-received presentation during the opening celebrations on September 21. Significantly, and for the first time in the history of the Bishop Museum, the new Pacific Hall now has two jaki-ed on permanent display. "The mats and items woven at the Symposium will be part of an exhibit in early 2014," Tamara said.